Value and incentives for adoption of Blockchain technology for a single supplier multiple retailer networks

Abstract

Studies on the adoption of Blockchain technology (BT) in supply chains have recently gained considerable importance because BT can enable secure, scalable, reliable, and traceable information sharing among partners. In this paper, the value of the adoption of BT is analysed in a single supplier and multi-retailer arrangement wherein the demand at retailers could be correlated. The newsvendor model and game theory are used to analyse the expected profit generated by the supplier and retailers from the adoption of BT. The demand pattern (stationary or nonstationary) and structure (number of retailers participating in a private/permissioned BT) affect BT adoption in a single supplier and multi-retailer supply chain coordination. The retailer's incentive increases when more number of retailers with independent demand participates in the BT framework.